2008 Harley-Davidson FLTR: complaints, problems and recalls

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 HARLEY-DAVIDSON FLTR ROAD GLIDE. WHILE DRIVING ANY SPEED, THE VEHICLE PULLED TO THE LEFT. THE DEALER CHECKED THE ALIGNMENT AND FOUND NO FAILURE. THE VEHICLE IS AT THE DEALER UNTIL A REPLACEMENT CAN BE ISSUED. THEY ALSO INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT HIS HANDS SHOULD BE ON THE HANDLE BARS AT ALL TIMES WHILE DRIVING. THE DEALER INFORMATION WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 150 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5. UPDATED 03-04-08 *BF THE MANUFACTURER STATED THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE MOTORCYCLE.

Owner-reported narrative. 5 miles reported. Look up ODI 10209532 at NHTSA ↗

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2008 HARLEY DAVIDSON FLTR. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE WINDSHIELD SHOWS DOUBLE IMAGES. WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED, HE WILL SEE TWO VEHICLES AND TWO LINES ON THE ROAD INSTEAD OF ONE. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THE CONTACT'S HEIGHT WAS THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE AND NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH THE WINDSHIELD. THE DEALER WAS UNABLE TO ASSIST. THE ENGINE SIZE AND FAILURE MILEAGE WERE UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 600. UPDATED 01-29-08. *KB UPDATED 01/29/08 *TR

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10213426 at NHTSA ↗

2008 FLTR HARLEY-DAVIDSON ROAD GLIDE TWICE WENT TO FORCED IDLE MODE WHILE OPERATING. DTC CODES P1511 AND P2135 WERE SET. HARLEY HAS ISSUED TT 418 NOV 3, 2009, TO ADDRESS THIS WIDESPREAD PROBLEM ON THROTTLE BY WIRE BIKES 2008 - 2011. DEALER COMPLIANCE ON TT 418 WEAK. BIKE CUTTING OFF IN TRAFFIC IS OBVIOUS SAFETY HAZARD. RECALL IS NEEDED TO REPLACE POORLY DESIGNED ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR ON TCA (THROTTLE CONTROL ACTUATOR). *KB

Owner-reported narrative. 11,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10416580 at NHTSA ↗

HARLEY DAVIDSON MOTORCYCLES WITH THE THROTTLE BY WIRE WILL GO INTO A LIMP HOME MODE. THIS IS WHERE YOU ARE ACCELERATING AND THE MOTOR BASICALLY SHUTS DOWN AND GOES TO JUST ABOVE AN IDLE SPEED. THIS IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS BECAUSE THE THROTTLE BY WIRE IS FAILING. YOU COULD BE ACCELERATING TO TURN INTO TRAFFIC, ACROSS TRAFFIC OR TO GET ON THE INTERSTATE AND THE THROTTLE FAILS AND GOES INTO LIMP HOME MODE AND SLOWS YOU TO A TOP SPEED OF 15 MPH IN 1ST GEAR. IN 6TH GEAR I COULD ONLY DO 40 MPH. THIS IS NOT AN ISOLATED INCIDENT AND HARLEY KNOWS THEY AR…

Owner-reported narrative. 12,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10422522 at NHTSA ↗

THE REAR BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH FAILED WHILE TRAVELING ON I-85 IN ATLANTA, GA. ON BRAKING TO EXIT THE INTERSTATE THE PEDAL WENT TO THE FULL DOWN POSITION WITH NO EFFECT ON BRAKING. I WAS CLOSE TO WORK AND WHEN I GOT TO WORK, I PRESSED THE PEDAL TO FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG AND NOTICED A PUDDLE OF FLUID UNDER THE BIKE. WHEN I DEPRESSED THE PEDAL A LARGE AMOUNT OF FLUID STREAMED OUT OF THE AREA WHERE THE PLASTIC PART OF THE SWITCH INSERTS INTO THE METAL HOUSING. ALL OF THE FLUID LEAKED OUT. THERE WERE TWO PUDDLES APPROXIMATELY 8-10 INCHES IN DIAMETER…

Owner-reported narrative. 50,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10452039 at NHTSA ↗

THE PASSENGER FLOORBOARD/FOOTBOARD MOUNTING BOLT IS PRONE TO SHEER OFF. THIS EJECTS THE 10-15 POUND PART FROM THE MOTORCYCLE CAUSING A SERIOUS SAFETY HAZARD. THIS IS A COMMON OCCURRENCE AND EVEN THOUGH THE PART WAS REDESIGNED IN 2010 TO INCLUDE 2 MOUNTING BOLTS THE HARLEY DAVIDSON CORPORATION HAS DENIED THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE EARLIER SINGLE MOUNT BOLT DESIGN. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 31,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10531932 at NHTSA ↗

THE ABS MODULE ON MY BIKE HAS QUIT WORKING. WITH THE IGNITION ON THE MODULE CLOSES AND THE FRONT BRAKES CANNOT BE APPLIED. IF THIS WERE TO HAPPEN WHILE RIDING, A CRASH WOULD BE INEVITABLE. THE MODULE SHOULD BE DESIGNED SO THAT THERE IS AN EMERGENCY BYPASS IN THE EVENT THE INTERNALS INSIDE THE MODULE BECOMES STUCK SO THAT THE RIDER IS NOT SUDDENLY WITHOUT BRAKES. HARLEY DAVIDSON SHOULD ISSUE AN IMMEDIATE RECALL.

Owner-reported narrative. 27,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10855689 at NHTSA ↗

TL* THE CONTACT OWNED A 2008 HARLEY-DAVIDSON FLTR ROAD GLIDE. WHILEDRIVING APPROXIMATELY10 MPH, THE BRAKE PEDALWAS DEPRESSED,BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO RESPOND WITHOUT WARNING. AS A RESULT,THE CONTACT SIDESWIPED ANOTHER VEHICLE AND CRASHED INTO AN ALUMINUM BRIDGE.A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED INJURIES TO THE LEFT ARM, LEFT FOREARM, LEFT KNEE, AND ANKLES THAT REQUIRED MEDICAL ATTENTION. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER, BUT WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE VEHICLE WAS DESTROYED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. …

Owner-reported narrative. 36,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10888720 at NHTSA ↗

Reported: 2008-07-30 (July 30, 2008)

HARLEY DAVIDSON IS RECALLING 47,579 MY 2008 FLHP, FLHPE, FLHR, FLHRC, FLHRSE4, FLHT, FLHTC, FLHTCU, FLHTCUSE3, FLHTP, FLHX, AND FLTR MOTORCYCLES. THESE MOTORCYCLES MAY EXPERIENCE A CRACKING OF THE FUEL FILTER SHELL LEADING TO LOSS OF FUEL PRESSURE. THIS LOSS OF FUEL PRESSURE CAN CAUSE DIMINISHED PERFORMANCE AND, IN SOME CASES, MAY CAUSE AN ENGINE STALL OR A NO-START CONDITION.

Consequence: THIS CONDITION COULD LEAD TO A CRASH WHICH COULD CAUSE INJURY OR DEATH TO THE RIDER.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FUEL FILTER SHELL FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 31, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HARLEY DAVIDSON AT 1-414-343-4056.

Reported: 2018-01-29 (January 29, 2018)

Harley-Davidson Motor Company (Harley-Davidson) is recalling all 2008-2011 Touring, CVO Touring and VSRC motorcycles equipped with anti-lock brakes (ABS), including Road King (FLHR), Road King Police (EFI) (FLHP), Road King Police (EFI) (FLHPE), Electra Glide Standard Police (EFI) (FLHTP), Electra Glide Classic (EFI) (FLHTC), Electra Glide Ultra Classic (EFI) (FLHTCU) and Street Glide (EFI) (FLHX), 2008 VROD (VRSCAWA), CVO Road King 4 (FLHRSE4), Night Rod (VRSCDA), CVO Ultra Classic 3 (FLHTCUSE3), Night Rod Special (VRSCDXA), 2008-2010 Road King Classic (EFI) (FLHRC), 2008-2009 Road Glide (EFI) (FLTR) and Electra Glide Standard (EFI) (FLHT), 2009-2010 V-Rod (VRSCAW), 2009 CVO Ultra Classic (FLHTCUSE4) and CVO Road Glide 3 (FLTRSE3), 2009-2011 Night Rod Special (VRSCDX) and V-Rod Muscle (VRSCF), 2010 CVO Ultra Classic 5 (FLHTCUSE5) and CVO Street Glide (FLHXSE), 2010-2011 Electra Glide Ultra Limited (FLHTK) and Road Glide Custom (FLTRX), 2011 Road Glide Ultra 103 (FLTRU103), Street Glide 103 (FLHX103), Road King Classic 103 (FLHRC103), CVO Ultra Classic 6 (FLHTCUSE6), CVO Road Glide Ultra (FLTRUSE), Road Glide Custom 103 (FLTRX103), and CVO Street Glide 2 (FLHXSE2) motorcycles. Deposits may form on components within the brake system if the DOT 4 brake fluid is not replaced for a prolonged period of time beyond the 2-year maintenance schedule specified in the Owner’s Manual.

Consequence: These deposits may cause a valve within the ABS Hydraulic Control Unit to stick, reducing braking ability and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Harley-Davidson will notify owners, and dealers will flush the entire brake system with new Platinum Label DOT 4 brake fluid, free of charge. The recall began on February 14, 2018. Owners may contact Harley-Davidson customer service at 1-800-258-2464. Harley-Davidson's number for this recall is 0171.